Skylogic is conducting a new survey on the state of the drone industry, and they need your help.

When you take Skylogic’s 10-minute survey, you’ll automatically be entered to win one of the following:

A DJI Spark package ($425 value) One of two $100 Visa gift cards

Everyone who takes the survey will be given a free summary of Skylogic’s research results ($95 value), which will give you insights into who’s working where in the drone industry, what kinds of drone are being flown, and more.

Skylogic Research, LLC, is one of the leading research and advisory services firms for the commercial drone industry, and owner of Drone Analyst®.

There is a lack of objective information on the drone industry. We find an absence of credible market-based research and little understanding of the difference between large industry forecasts and actual buyer adoption rates. This study will clarify much of that.

– Colin Snow, CEO and Founder of Skylogic Research, LLC

This is the third year that Skylogic has conducted their annual survey, and the data produced over the last two years have been compelling, and revealed some interesting trends in the drone industry.

Last year, Skylogic’s survey contained data on where drone pilots were making money in the field, as well as highlighting a gap between the areas where drone pilots were working and the areas where they were making significant incomes.

Check out this pie chart from the 2017 report showing the sectors where drone pilots reported doing commercial work:

But just because the majority of commercial drone operators reported that they were working in aerial cinematography, that didn’t mean they were making money in that sector.

This fact is illustrated by a ranking in the 2017 report that lists the top 10 drone services making over $100K/year—surprisingly, it’s Surveying / Mapping / GIS that ranks first in that list, with Aerial Photography and/or Video coming in at #2.

After those first two, the third area listed where drone pilots were making over $100K/year is Utilities Infrastructure Inspection or Monitoring—the seventh item listed in the pie chart of drone services shown above, with only 3% of respondents indicating that they work in that field.

Which is all to say that last year’s report revealed potential market needs for drone pilots—areas where drone pilots could beef up their skills, and start making some serious money. For instance, if you’re a commercial drone pilot trying to drum up work, using information in the report alone you might decide to get good at Utilities Infrastructure work, since that’s one area for drone services where both the need and the money seems to be.

According to Skylogic, their 2018 survey and resulting report promises to be their most comprehensive study of drone market trends and usage to date.

The research will seek to get information about who is buying and using UAVs, and is being supported by DJI, DroneDeploy, DroneInsurance.com, and Trimble. The survey is designed to uncover fresh insights on which drone industry sectors are thriving, which aren’t, and how businesses are using drone-acquired data in their day-to-day operations.

The survey will explore:

Who’s buying what types of drones from which makers at which prices and for what uses? How large are drone-based service providers, and how and where are they positioning themselves to whom and which target industries? What most concerns businesses that perform drone-based projects and why? How much are service providers, business buyers, and public agencies using flight management and data analytic software for image-based projects? Critical industry drivers; vendor and service provider market share; and business and public agency adoption trends and issues

Who should take the survey?

Individuals or organizations who have purchased a drone in the past 12 months for any reason Commercial drone service providers Businesses, enterprises, and public agencies that perform drone-based operations

The survey will be open from now until August 9th, with prize winners announced on August 10th. The report will be available in early September, just in time for the annual InterDrone conference.